ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Recently, there has been much discourse in the media regarding how LGBTQ+, or “queer”, people are portrayed. One of the main criticisms for the representation of the LGBTQ+ community is queerbaiting, a term used when someone implies a queer relationship or attraction to lure a queer audience without actually depicting it. Singer Billie Eilish’s music video for her song, “Lost Cause,” is an example of this. The video, which premiered on YouTube on June 2, features Eilish in a room with other women, with sexual implications evident throughout. Additionally, she captioned one of her Instagram posts “I love girls” on her account @billieeilish to promote the video. Both the music video and the Instagram post were released during Pride month, which led some viewers to believe Eilish was coming out as queer. Other fans did not believe this as Eilish has repeatedly stated in interviews and on social media that she is straight.

Due to many LGBTQ+ fans feeling that Eilish queerbaited in her music video, she has been receiving many negative comments on social media. Some fans have gone as far to say they are going to stop listening to her music completely. Her fans hope she will notice this backlash and address the situation by possibly issuing an apology. Freshman Patroclus Hodjat believes Eilish’s fans have reacted fairly amid this queerbaiting scandal.

“If she gets backlash from [the video], it will expose more people to queerbaiting since [she is a] big musician,” Hodjat said.

Videos like Eilish’s contribute to inaccurate portrayals of the LGBTQ+ community. With the legalization of gay marriage in 2012, LGBTQ+ people have never been more accepted, yet it is still difficult to find accurate representation in media. Queer people will often look for any representation they can. Knowing this, the media will imply a queer relationship in television, music and movies to attract LGBTQ+ fans, but never confirm it to be queer as that could risk losing their homophobic fanbase.

However, some people think that Eilish does not deserve the backlash she’s received. Some fans on social media platforms do not believe the video was queerbaiting or believe it should be taken down. Other fans feel that Eilish did not realize the video could be considered queerbaiting and therefore should be given a second chance. President of the Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA), senior Kathleen Menninger, feels Eilish may not have been aware that she was queerbaiting in her music video.

“I think she definitely deserves to be reprimanded for this so it does not happen again,” Menninger said. “Given how young she is, and that she may or may not have been informed about [queerbaiting makes me] think it was [just a] mistake, and I [do not] think it is worth cancelling someone over a mistake. As long as she learns from it, [she] deserves a second chance.”

“Cancelling” someone is when a celebrity loses support from fans if they feel that the celebrity did something morally offensive. For Eilish, people want others to stop listening to and buying her music, merchandise and concert tickets. Not everyone agrees with this tactic; however, people from both sides of the argument agree that Eilish needs to apologize for the music video. It is important for Eilish to acknowledge this issue, otherwise it could harm the queer community through continued exploitation for profit by creators.

“[Queerbaiting] affects the [LGBTQ+] community because it is discriminating in a way,” freshman Bella Assencoa said. “[It feels like] someone [who is straight] is just pretending to be queer.”

It can be damaging for the LGBTQ+ community to see straight people’s portrayal of someone who is queer as a marketing tactic for publicity. The LGBTQ+ community should not have to endure discrimination every day while celebrities exploit it for attention in the media. As people start to hold celebrities more accountable for their actions, queerbaiting will slowly decline in the future. Since people are learning how to identify queerbaiting and why it is harmful, it has become less likely for people to get away with it. Although Eilish has not apologized for queerbaiting in her music video, her influence could set a good example for other celebrities if she does. Furthermore, if there are more celebrities shown apologizing for queerbaiting and not repeating their actions in the future, it can set a precedent for others to do the same.